Believe Me
by PetiteEnigma
Summary: Sequel to Trust Me. Part I: starts 5 years after the end of Trust Me. Part II: starts 9 years after the end of PtI. Next Generation Wicked. Post Musical/Post Book. Fiyeraba. Please R&R!
1. Part I: Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: **I don't own Wicked._

_**A/N- **First off, thank you to everyone who ever reviewed Trust Me and I hope you like Believe Me just as much_

_**A/N2- **On that note, pancakes for everyone who reviewed the last chapter of Trust me_

_Also known as flapjacks for:_

_Rosei85_

_greengirl16_

_MissWickedWitch_

_Crazy Homeschooler- powdered sugar on top for you_

_JadeTakashi- and powdered sugar for you too_

_TheWitch'sCat_

_...both CH and JT gave me ideas for this fic's name, but I went with CH's idea._

The green lay curled up beside her no-longer-a-scarecrow-lover. A month earlier in the midst of a lightning storm, he had been struck by a strange green flame and the spell was lifted. Sounds of opening and closing cabinet doors in the small kitchen made her groggily sit up, rubbing her eyes with an emerald fist. There was a dull thud of wood to something else.

"Hey—that hurt!" shouted Arii, emerging from the kitchen rubbing her head, "Mama! Liir hit me in the head with a bowl!"

"I did not!" Liir yelled indignantly.

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did n—"

"That's enough you two! I don't care who started it or how it happened." Elphaba cut them off and got out of bed, "Liir, come over here."

"Yes, Mama…"" he sighed, his little shoulders sagging slightly.

"Oh don't look so glum about it," she sat on the bed and motioned for them to sit beside her, "I want you always to remember this: we're a family, and that means nobody gets left behind, or?" she waited for one of them to continue.

"Or forgotten," said the emerald-eyed girl softly.

The green kissed her daughter on the top of her head, "There, all better." She stood once more and moved towards the kitchen, but turned back, "I better not find a mess in there."

The twins blushed and grinned sheepishly at each other, "Maybe…"

Five years ago they had fled Oz and settled in an abandoned three room cabin deep in a forest in Fliaan. Fiyero and Elphaba had raised their children in this forest proudly. There were days when either Arii or Liir, or some days both of them would want to know what lay beyond the forest. Their green mother allowed them only to go to a small clearing, but no farther. To know their father was human and not a scarecrow was nice, but it didn't stop the fact that they had gotten quite used to a straw-filled Papa over the years.

Arii had bright green eyes, olive skin, and thick, shoulder length, dark brown hair. Liir looked much the same except his hair was kept short and his eyes were so dark brown they looked nearly black. They both wore plain linen tunics for shirts, but she wore a skirt made of vibrantly colored cloth scraps and he denim pants their mother had adjusted. Neither wore shoes; their feet had become very tough over the years. They did have a pair of woven straw sandals each though.

"Liir. Arii." The green woman called from the kitchen, "Bring some more firewood in."

"Yes, Mama," they called and rushed out the door.

Around the side of the house was a stump their father used for chopping wood, which was now much easier for Fiyero considering he now had bone and muscle not straw beneath his clothes. Elphaba never allowed them near it if he was chopping wood, but it did no harm for the twins to carry the wood in. After they had dropped as much as they could carry into the wood box the green shooed them outside to play. Laughter rang out through the trees as their father spun Arii around, tossed her up and caught her again , then proceeded to do the same for Liir.

"Again Papa! Again! Again!" both of them chanted, bouncing up and down merrily.

"Maybe later," he told them, "believe me, you two are getting big. Let's go see what Mama is making for breakfast."

They skipped ahead into the kitchen to find their mother furiously kneading some sort of dough. Her raven hair had broken free of its braid in places. Streaks of flour could be seen on her black dress, verdigris forearms (she had rolled up her sleeves) and even a slight dusting in her hair.

"Can we help, Mama?" asked Liir, peering up onto the counter.

"May, not can, Liir." Elphaba was determined to raise well-spoken—and well-read—children.

"_May _we help, Mama?" he asked pleadingly.

"Alright then, get your stools from your room." She acquiesced and broke of two pieces of dough for them to knead and set them side by side on the opposite counter.

"Thank you, Mama!" Arii set her stool down and Liir followed suit. Each had an 'A' and 'L' singed respectively into the tops of their stools.

They set to kneading the bread dough and eventually all three lapsed into silence. The green didn't hear Fiyero come in, but the twins turned to see, and covered their mouths with flour-covered hands to keep from giggling. He grabbed her around the middle just as she was sprinkling more flour over the dough. Emerald hands shot up, causing flour to rain down over the four of them.

"Don't _do _that!" she whirled around, but he caught her in a deep kiss. When they broke the twins could hardly contain their laughter. For kissing was a very silly thing to them. "Are you done with that dough yet you two?" their mother asked and they faced the counter once more, pulling, squeezing, rolling, and pounding their bits of dough.

"I love you, Fae," Fiyero kissed his green love on the nose.

She fingered the emerald triangle hanging from the chain around her emerald neck, "and I love you, Yero." Elphaba clapped her hands together, but regretted doing so when the large cloud of flour dust made her sneeze, "Now, let's set this dough aside so it can rise, and who wants breakfast?"

"We do! We do! We do!" Liir and Arii jumped up and down to see what Mama was keeping warm on the back of the stove.

"Calm down, calm down." She unveiled a plate piled high with pancakes and they followed her hungrily to the table, a tin plate and cup in each their hands. "Really Yero, it's like we never feed them or something."

They all sat at the little wooden table in the little wooden chairs that had been left behind contentedly eating their pancakes. Maple syrup was among the rationed foods, so only a dab for the twins. Elphaba and Fiyero didn't much care for anything on their pancakes and it tasted just fine. This was normal life for the four of them, and a very comfortable life it was.

_**A/N- **So, what do you think? Of Elphaba? fiyero? The twins? Where they live? Please review!_

_Oh, and my obsession before Wicked was the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder (and anything else dealing with pioneers for that matter) just to let you know, so that did influence this first chapter somewhat. The green flame mentioned in the begining that Fiyero was struck by is an actual meteorological phenomenon known as Saint Elmo's Fire that occurs during heavy lightning storms. Arii is based on Esmeralda from The Hunchback of Notre Dame in appearance. Incase you didn't figure it out from the time frame in regards to Trust Me, the twins are 5 now. The 'and that means nobody gets left behind or forgotten' is from Lilo and Stitch (Ohana)._


	2. Part I: Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer: **Wicked. Copyrighted._

_**A/N- **Sorry it took so long for me to update. I could only write this in short spurts due to summer school._

_**A/N2- **Frozen Berries with whipped cream on top for my reviewers!_

_Cold little fruits with creamy air on top for:_

_Rosie85_

_Crazy Homeschooler_

_TheWitch'sCat_

_JadeTakashi_

_Erikssecretlover_

_Drop Your Oboe_

* * *

Three years before, Glinda the Good had married a Sir Chuffrey. It wasn't so much the social obligation, but the political implications and guarantee of having her amassed wealth insured by the practicalities of a husband. In the five years since the death of her best friend, she had become more distant, and those who knew her well watched as the blonde sank into despair day by day. Her ability to hide her true feelings from the public had flourished though, and the reticence of her rapture had seemingly increased over the years.

When Dorothy had left and the Scarecrow disappeared and the Lion slinked away, the Tinman remained. It seemed he had an unspoken devotion to protect Lady Glinda. Whether it was respect or affection one could never be too sure. For whenever she entered a room his eyes seemed to compete with the sparkling brilliance of her tiara and scepter.

"Oh there you are Tin-tin," she floated down the grand hallway, her blue gown held up to allow herself to move at a brisk pace, "I've been looking everywhere for you."

"Is there something you need my Lady?" he asked, bowing slightly with a rattle of metal.

"Nothing really, I just wanted someone to talk to." Her smile quivered and she looked as though she would become a mess at any moment.

"Anything for you Lady Glinda." He held out one of his tin arms and she linked one of her own around it.

As they walked the Good spoke and the Tin listened, "It's been so long now, you would think that by now I would be done grieving. I can't forget them. Not darling Nessa, not handsome Fiyero, not wonderful Elphie, and especially not sweet Boq. All of my friends—my real friends—are dead. At least I know what happened to them, but Boq, I have thus far learned nothing of his fate. Something inside me tells me what me what happened to him is my fault."

She leaned against his cold metal exterior and wept violently. "Shhh…shhh," he patted her back softly as the tears slowly began to rust him. Small, hollow, plink sounds came from his tin torso when the larger of the tears rolled down her cheeks and off the tip of her nose. He didn't care though; now was not the time to reveal his identity to her.

"I-I-I-I m-m-miss E-El-ph-ie-"Glinda choked out between sobs. She blew her nose sharply into a handkerchief pulled from its hiding place in the middle of her bra.

"Would you like to go lay down my Lady?" the Tin Man asked and stood.

With a deep breath, she rose and he helped her to the door of her bedroom without a further word between them.

* * *

A slight breeze wafted through the crisp evening air of the forest. In a shallow basket held between them, the twins had gathered various nuts and berries. As well as a small bunch of flowers Arii had insisted she pick for their mother. Neither would admit it, but they had gone farther into the forest than their parents ever permitted and couldn't remember the different forks they had taken.

"Liir," she said cautiously, "I-I think we're lost."

"No we're not," he reassured his sister, "We just have to go back to the…" the reality of their situation hit, "oh, I guess we are lost."

"What are we going to do now?" Arii motioned for him to set the basket down and proceeded to sit against the rough bark of a large Quoxwood tree. Her legs folded to her chest, arms wrapped around and her eyes pressed against her knees.

* * *

Darkness had descended at an unusual rate it seemed on the forest, or maybe it was just Elphaba's fear that the twins had not returned yet. She had given them specific instructions to not go any farther than the first fork. The green was sure they had disobeyed her, but there was no time to be angry with them. Wringing her apron nervously with emerald hands, she walked into the kitchen where Fiyero was drinking a cup of tea. Another cup, filled with hot chocolate, sat more towards the center of the table.

"Yero, Arii and Liir aren't back yet," she plunked herself down into a chair, still as awkward at times even after all these years, "They've never been out this late before," her nerves clearly stricken, "and there are animals—and Animals, and people in the forest."

"Hush, Fae," he stood and enveloped her in his arms.

She mumbled incoherently into his chest and he lifted her sharp chin with a finger.

"We have to go and find them, Yero," she pleaded with him, her voice thick, "we _have to!"_

"Fae, you know as well as I that going into the forest at night is entirely unreasonable. Liir and Arii are extremely smart children; they'll live through the night." He tucked a loose black tendril behind one of her ears.

"And what if they don't, Yero? –Oh, I can't bear to think of it!" Elphaba thrust her verdant face into her palms and sank to her knees.

Fiyero sat and pulled her onto his lap. For she was still on the lighter side, he knew she ate most anything and didn't worry about her in that sense. He did however, worry about her emotional well-being. In the five years since they had left Oz, she had adjusted easily to their simple life, but her silent musings always seemed turned towards the best friend she had left behind—who thought she was dead—Glinda the Good.

"We'll find them, Fae. We will." He reassured her, rubbing her back in concentric circles as well.

"I hope so—but hoping only accounts for so much, there is also doing what must be done," the green said, lapsing into some of her personal philosophy. Thankfully Fiyero's was no longer entirely dancing through life. Though there were some social implications of dance Elphaba had admitted over time.

"Then you must do more than hope--you must believe that we will find our children tomorrow." He kissed her on the nose and they walked to their bedroom. He helped her to change into her gray nightgown; she crawled between the sheets and blankets and tried to think positively about the following day. Such thoughts were not to be had.

_**A/N- **So, what did you think of the chapter? the situations? Oh, and just a note, I finished this up between the hours of 12 and 3 am. Please review!_


	3. Part I: Chapter 3

_**Disclaimer: **Wicked isn't mine (no duh) but I'm seeing it for the second time August 5 with the LA cast._

_**A/N- **My updates will hopefully not be once a week apart anymore, but I'm in summer school, so it isn't a guarantee_

_**A/N2- **Caramel custard for my revieweers_

_"Do I take it we'll have pudding by the fire?" said Nanny, looking up brightly. "It's caramel custard."- Wicked pg. 399_

_greengirl16_

_Crazy Homeschooler_

_Drop Your Oboe_

_JadeTakashi_

_TillITryIllNeverKnow_

_TheWitch'sCat_

Huddled together with Arii's shawl wrapped around them, the twins had slept fitfully through the night and woken often at the slightest rustling of leaves. With the first of the gray pre-dawn light, some of their hope was restored. Such a thing as hope seemed connected to the sun. For as it spread light and heat it also filled a sense of joy in those young enough to appreciate it.

Liir yawned, "Morning sister."

"Morning brother," she mumbled in reply, rubbing her eyes in a way that would remind one of a rabbit.

"We should get going," he stood and helped her up as well.

"I'm hungry…" Arii was terribly shy at times, but loved to dance.

"Me too. Let's eat." Liir was more outspoken though, and was dangerously care-free far too often.

In general silence they ate their fill of berries from the basket. Strange shadows caught their gazes for fleeting instances as they raced through the forest. Each time they appeared closer, and the snapping of a pile of bone-dry twigs confirmed the twins' unspoken fears. A rough hand encircled each of their arms. They struggled and writhed in the grips of the strange men. Arii screamed until one of them pressed a cloth to her nose and she lost consciousness.

"Get away from my sister!" Liir shouted as the man holding him attempted to bind his hands.

"Oh, she's your sister, I see. Well then, that will just make my job a little more interesting." The other one threw Arii's limp body to the ground and tied her hands behind her until her wrists bled.

A longer piece of rope was then used to tie them together and drag them along. Still groggy from the fumes, Arii stumbled at times when they moved too quickly. Her knees stung awfully from the little rocks and other bits that were now ground into it, as well as her forehead because she couldn't use her hands to break her fall. At the very least she still had her shawl wrapped about her small shoulders.

* * *

"Fae, time to wake up," Fiyero gently shook his distraught green love out of her half-sleep, fresh burns ringed her eyes where the tears she had attempted to suppress had leaked through.

"I'm up," her voice was ragged as she swiftly dressed, grabbing her broom from its place in the corner.

They each polished off an apple shortly and sped away on the broom. The forest thinned until the desert was exposed: an expanse of sand and extreme temperatures. Several figures were seen moving through the forest, but from their altitude neither could tell if they were human or Animal—it was clear they wore clothes. Swiftly dipping the broom down for a better view of a particularly fast moving group, the green's breath caught in her throat.

Beneath them were Arii and Liir, dragged along like ragdolls through the undergrowth. In helpless shock Elphaba steered the broom to follow the group. Guns were apparent on both of the men and she feared any attempt at rescue currently would hurt more than help. Reassuringly, Fiyero rubbed the small of her back. It had always proven to be an effective way to calm her.

"Yero," she whispered forcibly, "somebody has to do something!"

He returned, "We."

"What?" the almost-silence was nearly broken. She clapped an emerald hand over her mouth with a muffled curse.

"_We _have to do something—"

"I know that!" she snapped quietly, furrowing her brow.

"Shhh, shhh, please don't fly off the handle now, Fae," he didn't want to draw any attention to them. The sight of the late Arjiki prince Fiyero Tiggular with The Wicked Witch of the West would confirm the theory of ghosts, or worse:That they had not actually died.

Quiet, shaking, breaths filled her instead of suppressed rage now. There was a strange whirring sound, a sensation of falling, and numbness after the sharp pain that was all too familiar.

* * *

The hours wore on but fatigue was long past the twins. With deep breaths and solid steps like windup toys, they found a way to maintain the pace. Neither of them knew how close they were to their parents. A trickling spring was the last place to get water before the desert. Liir and Arii watched as the men drank and filled their canteens. None was offered to them; they were too afraid to ask. One of them jerked the rope and the twins tumbled onto the burning sands. It blew into their eyes and stung their throats and noses.

"Get up you!" the other one shouted, kicking more sand at them, "we have to be across this desert before noon tomorrow! Get moving!"

"Where are you taking us?" Liir demanded as he pulled Arii up with him.

The first laughed loudly, unkindly, "To be sold in the Emerald City!"

"He'll work well in the cornfields, and she in a house," the second elbowed his friend in the ribs, "who knows, in a few years she might make a good whore."

At this they rolled around in mirth as the five year old twins clung to each other. No sooner had they stopped that the men yanked them through the sand once more. Their throats were dry, their eyes burned, and they longed for a drop of the water the men were drinking. Any sense of time either of them might have possessed was lost. They knew when the moon was overhead, and then when it was replaced by the sun, but no more than that.

Just as the man had said, they were out of the desert when the sun was at its peak: noon. When the twins had nearly collapsed from hunger and dehydration, they were thrown into what could best be described as a crate. The heel from a loaf of bread and a pipkin of water were shoved in through a strange hatch on the side near the bottom. Try as they might, there was no way to open it from the inside. Packaged for shipping, they were goods to be sold.

_**A/N- **Alright, I know, it's not the happy story you all expected. But what do you think? _

_Also, I got the idea somewhat from this:_

_Wicked, pg 232:_

_"Winkie roundup," the rafiqi complained. It wasn't clear if he was talking about a local argument over a drunken slight to a Vinkus maided or about a slave trade and resettlement camps. _


	4. Part I: Chapter 4

_**Disclaimer:** Wicked isn't mine, but I have now stolen three of Gregory Maguire's characters for this story. Shoot me. _

_**A/N- **I'm really sorry for not updating for two weeks now. Summer school is a drag. But on the plus side my birthday is this Tuesday, August 5th, and I'm going to go see Wicked._

_**A/N2- **Pineapple for my reviewers!_

_Sweet, yellow, tropical fruit for:_

_Vampire Reader_

_greengirl16_

_Dr Crazy Homeschooler_

_TheWitch'sCat_

_Drop Your Oboe_

_**A/N3- **Beware, I have stolen Irji, Manek, and Nor for purposes of this story._

* * *

The green propped herself up with her elbows, somewhat ignoring the excruciating pain in her left leg. Fiyero lay beside her, in his Scarecrow form once more. It was interesting how spells worked out at times. She assumed it had never been lifted, simply repressed by the strange green flames. Squeezing her eyes tight and pushing up into a sitting position, she shook his shoulder. There was deep pain in her eyes, he could tell.

"Fae, what happened?" Fiyero wiped a rogue tear from the corner of her eye with a gloved hand.

"I-I don't know. Where's my broom?" she scanned the area, it was in a bush, "Oh, there…"

Elphaba moved to get up, but he gently pushed her down, "I'll get it. You're hurt."

She watched gratefully, but it pained her to see him this way once more. The hem of her dress was soaked with blood and she pulled it back tentatively, afraid of what she would find. It revealed a long, wide gash from her knee to the middle of the side of her calf. Biting the inside of her cheek, the green tore the bottom of her second underskirt off. That one had the least blood on it. She picked out the splinters and rocks that had found their way in and wrapped the strip tightly around the open wound.

"Here's your broom—"Fiyero cut off and watched as she tied off the ends, "Oh, Fae…" He sank to his knees beside her.

"I've never fallen off before Yero. _Never. _What's _wrong_ with me?!" the green collapsed into her straw love's chest.

"Oh, Fae, nothing is wrong with you. You're simply a mother who wants to protect her children." He kissed the top of her head but accidentally bumped her leg. She yelped and bit her lip. "What is it?"

Without words she pointed to the makeshift bandage around her leg, through which blood could be seen along the edges. Her emotions were just as wounded as she was physically.

"Can you stand?" Fiyero held out a hand, but she grabbed the broom to use as a walking stick.

"I'm fine," She leaned heavily away from the injured appendage and hobbled a short ways, "See? I can stand—and walk too!"

He was worried by her lack of concern for her own well-being and before she could protest had scooped up his emerald love bridal-style.

* * *

The crate rattled, bumped, shook, and jostled. For hours the twins bounced around, by the time they had arrived wherever both were considerably sore

"Get out you." A man grabbed them roughly, and they hit their knees on the hard-packed dirt. "Auction starts at noon and I have to get you two Winkies to registration."

'Winkies? What's a Winkie?' thought Arii, but kept her mouth shut.

They were pulled along to a small room with three other children already there—a girl and two boys. A woman with a crooked smile stood in the corner. She measured and pinched and asked their names and ages. When she was finished they were instructed to rinse the dirt off their faces and hands in a tin pail. The man who had brought them in proceeded to tie them into a line. The five of them were marched unceremoniously through the streets, between buildings of varying shades of green that seemed to block out the sky at points like the forest the twins had grown up in. At a raised platform in the Square they were instructed to keep still and quiet.

Despite the warnings, the other girl, Nor, whispered to Arii, "What's gonna happen to us?"

"I don't know…" she answered, but quickly pursed her lips in a thin line.

A half hour passed in silence until well dressed people filed into the area of the square in front of the platform. One by one the children were brought up for inspection and then sent back to the group. The senior inspector told the auctioneer his lowest prices for each of them. Bids were placed and raised in an instant, until an older Gillikinese gentleman bought all five for a price no one could beat. Even through everything, Arii had still managed to keep hold of her shawl.

"Alright, come along now," the man, Sir Chuffrey, picked up the rope that bound the five youths together. They followed willingly to a small buggy, which they were all crammed into on the floor, while he hopped up and took the reins. None of them dared speak during the long journey. The buggy lurched to a stop in front of a grand estate four hours later.

The door was opened by the head housekeeper, who the children were then quickly turned over to. She brought them into the kitchen and called the other servants.

"Now," she untied them, but they stood stock still, "I am Isida and whatever the master and lady say goes. You do not talk back, you do not question, you do not stop until you are given leave, you do not eat unless you are instructed to, you do not go into the rooms if you are not there to clean or light the fire place, and you never try to escape." After a clock tick she added, "What are your names?"

They went down the line.

"Liir."

"Arii."

"Nor."

"Irji."

"Manek."

"And how old?"

"We're five," Liir answered for himself and his twin.

"I'm five too…" said Nor shyly.

"Eight," Irji held up all the fingers on one hand and three more on the next.

"Seven," grumbled Manek.

"Well then, follow me and I will show you where you are to sleep." Isida led them up the steep, rickety servants' stairs to the attic. It was divided into two rooms and she instructed the boys in one and the girls in the other. She left them to get settled in.

Each room was filled with discarded furniture that had been strewn about and left no place for movement. Divided up between the two rooms were: a table, five mismatched chairs, three beds, some sheets, blankets, and seven pillows, four rugs of various shape and size, a large chest—which contained other things as well—a small stool, and a pewter basin and pitcher that had a few considerable dents. After determining where the different things would go in each room, they set to work. An hour later, Arii and Nor had a bed covered with a sheet and blanket, the table, the two rugs they liked, the chest—with the basin and pitcher on top, four pillows(the boys didn't mind), two chairs, and the stool pushed under their bed. In the boys' room, Manek, Irji, and Liir had the other two beds—they had decided to switch off each night who got a bed and who slept on the floor--, three chairs, the remaining two rugs, three pillows, and sheets and blankets covered each bed with the extra set tucked away for whoever had to sleep on the floor. Once satisfied with their work, the five tramped back downstairs to the kitchen to receive instructions on what they were to do.

_**A/N- **Alright, what does everyone think of this? Please review!_


	5. Part I: Chapter 5

_**Disclaimer: **Wicked isn't mine..._

_**A/N- **Once again I appologize for the long time in between updates. I saw Wicked again on Tuesday August 5. Teal and Erin were great! I got autographs after the show from Erin Mackey-Glinda, Teal Wicks-Elphaba (a picture too!), Michael Drolet-Boq, D.J. Gregory-Fiyero understudy, Eric Stretch-Monkey, JoAnne Worley-Morrible, and David DeVries-Dillamond. I'm so happy I could...melt!_

_**A/N2- **Punch for my reviewers!_

_Lemons and melons and pears. Oh my!_

_Dr. Crazy Homeschooler_

_MissWickedWitch_

_TheWitch'sCat_

_beatex_

_TakeItAsItComes_

_greengirl16_

_Vampire Reader_

_Hopefully you'll all like this chapter just as much as the last one!_

_**A/N3- **A lot of skipping back and forth between E and F and the kids here._

* * *

Arii was instructed to clean Lady Glinda's rooms immediately and did not have a chance to know what her twin and the others would be doing. She held a feather duster and cloth in one hand, a broom in the other. There was a direct stair case she couldn't use, so she trudged up the back stairs in her bare feet to the Lady's rooms. Never in her life had she seen rooms so large or so well-furnished as these. The first was a parlor with a strange thick table-like thing built out of wood that had an uneven angle and was sitting on three legs. As she swept, the dust swirled around and could be seen in the sun's rays. An innocent giggle escaped her; the green eyed girl simply stood there, broom in hand, watching the dancing dust. There was a sharp clicking of heels and she hurriedly resumed sweeping, though it was done with a much greater fervor and energy.

"Hello," a woman's voice came from the doorway.

Arii kept sweeping, the dust swarmed in her eyes and mouth but she dared not stop, dared not respond to the greeting. Tears welled as she forced herself not to cough.

"Who are you?" the woman was now standing beside her.

"Arii…" she whispered, the tears and a cough escaped the girl.

"That's a very pretty name, Arii. I am Lady Glinda." The woman moved in front of her and she glanced up before returning her gaze to the floor.

With sudden realization she burst out, "I'm sorry! It won't happen again! I'll do it better next time. I promise! I'll dust everything off—"

"Shhh," Lady Glinda took one of the girl's small hands and gently eased the broom from the other, "You didn't do anything wrong Arii. I'm not mad at you, I just wanted to see who was in my parlor. How did you get here?"

"T-two men grabbed me a-and Liir i-in the f-forest and…and…m-made us walk across the d-desert. They put us in a box and a woman asked us things and there were so many people and we went with one of the men and now I'm here." She sobbed and sank to the floor in a heap; a low mumble could be heard "I miss Mama and Papa. I want to see them again…"

"Were you and Liir taken from your family?" Glinda sat on her knees and pulled the child into her warm embrace.

Arii was beyond words now and simply nodded before pressing her face to the chest of this strange, comforting woman. Glinda reminded her of her mother, but they were so opposite in appearance.

"Where do you live?" the lady rubbed her small back.

"In Fliaan," the girl looked up at the woman who held her, blonde curls bouncing with the same sunlight that made the dust dance and piercing yet gentle blue eyes.

"I've never been there, but I have been almost everywhere here in Oz." she wiped the tears from the little girl's face.

"It's pretty." Arii sat up and ringed her arms loosely around Glinda's neck, "I like playing in all the trees and helping Mama bake things." She wiped her nose with the back of her hand, "The trees and the grass make me think of Mama."

"Does she have the same pretty eyes as you?" the blonde smiled.

"No, she has brown eyes, Mama is green like all the leaves." She absentmindedly played with a curl.

"Your Mama is green?" the question was asked too forcefully, too accusingly.

"Uh huh, Papa calls her Fae, but I think her name is Elphaba." The girl answered innocently.

But it couldn't be! Elphie died five years ago! And Fiyero had died a few days before. This green eyed girl couldn't be older than five. Was Elphie still pregnant the last time she saw her? Glinda vaguely remembered that she hadn't been. So many thoughts filled the blonde's head. Her best friend was still very much alive and here was the daughter of her best friend.

"Is…Is you're Papa's name Fiyero?" Glinda asked biting her lip slightly.

"Yeah, Mama calls him Yero a lot." Arii giggled at the memory of her parents and their silly kissing.  
After a long period of silence, the kind blonde woman said, "Arii, I used to know you're Mama and Papa."

* * *

At the cabin, Elphaba had cleaned and stitched the gash properly. A long, wide strip of linen was now tightly wrapped around the wound. She found moving her knee difficult, but didn't loosen the bandage. Her Scarecrow lover offered her an arm for support and she gladly accepted. In truth, she was more afraid of putting too much weight on him than on her leg.

"I'm fine, Yero," the green turned to him sincerely, "I just want to find the twins now."

"Are you sure you don't want to rest your leg another day?" he stroked a stray jet lock behind one of the beautiful emerald ears.

"No, I can do this," she hobbled outside broom in hand and he followed, they mounted, but before they took to the skies she twisted herself to see him, "and besides, I have you to help."

* * *

"You knew my Mama and Papa?!" the girl seemed absolutely delighted and leapt up in joy.

"Yes, I did." Glinda stood as well and instructed Arii to stay in the room. She didn't tell the child she was off to berate her husband for buying child slaves though.

In Chuffrey's room, she hit him with her wand and threatened a divorce if he didn't send the children back to their families. The slave trade was illegal, but the thought of child slaves absolutely horrified Glinda and she would not be undermined in her own rulings. No one could be so heartless as to take a child from their home. Even the Tinman, who truly had no heart, would do something as abominable as this. Another thought struck her when she remembered Arii and Liir had come from Fliaan across the desert. It could kill them on the journey back.

* * *

The cloaked figure grabbed the smallest of the men and pressed the dagger to the bole of his throat. He gasped in surprise and terror when the firelight revealed a sharp green face.

"Listen and listen carefully. I'm looking for my children, boy and girl twins. She has bright green eyes. Tell me where they were sent." The dagger pressed harder.

"To the Emerald City." His throat was quickly slit. There could be no rumors at this time of her survival.

"Thank you…" she wiped the blood off the blade with her cloak and hopped back on the broom.

The green and Fiyero swept through the sky in silence without attracting the attention of so much as a fly. As the glare of the City threatened to expose them, she gently lowered them into a thick grove of trees. Her long hair tucked under the conical hat, a dark scarf wound around and tucked under the edge of the cape. Even in as auspicious a disguise as this, Elphaba was able to blend into the crowds just as she had done those years ago with the Resistance.

* * *

"Liir!" the green eyed child shouted down from the top of the main stairs, "Liir come quickly!"

Isida appeared instead and grabbed the girl roughly. She slapped the five year old, leaving red welts that stung with the sudden onset of salty tears.

"You never shout!" another slap, "You never use these stairs!" she boxed her ears, "And you never stop until you are dismissed!" Isida threw Arii against the wall with enough force to send a glass vase on a shelf toppling onto the girl. The thickest of the shards embedded itself in her arm; other smaller bits simply drove into her skin.

The sound of clicking heels interrupted the beating, "Isida! That is quite enough!" Glinda picked up the bleeding broken child, "You have no authority to carry out punishments. For a month you are to have only water and crackers." Isida had been with them the longest, but she also hadn't been bought and Glinda often found herself wishing the young woman would leave.

Sir Chuffrey watched from his doorway and realized the blonde truly cared for these children. It seemed a similarity to how an aunt behaved. Perhaps he had been wrong to buy the children, but the decision seemed to have been controlled by forces beyond his knowing. Something told him this girl and her twin brother were brought to Glinda for a reason, and that the other three would be instrumental in this as well.

_**A/N- **Do you like it? Glinda's reaction? Arii? Anything else? Please review!_


	6. Part I: Chapter 6

_**Disclaimer: **I don't own Wicked, what else is new? (sarcasm rules)_

_**A/N- **I'm ba-ack! Did anyone miss me? Here's another chappy. R&R it!_

_**A/N- **Blueberries for everyone who reviewed last chapter_

_Berries of blueness for:_

_greengirl16_

_Dr. Crazy Homeschooler_

_Vampire Reader_

_Drop Your Oboe_

_TheWitch'sCat_

The next three days were comparatively quiet, that is, until the anniversary of the death of the Wicked Witch of the West on the fourth day. Glinda had grudgingly kept the heritage of the twins a secret. In truth she was thrilled to know her friend was alive and wished Oz could see the real Elphaba for what she truly was. The blonde wondered if Elphaba knew the Wizard was her biological father. She probably didn't, but after so many years it had become obvious to Glinda. The girl, Arii, and her twin brother Liir, were nearly identical, male and female versions of each other, except for those emerald eyes of hers. Perhaps that Green Elixir that made Elphie green had given her daughter a verdigris trait of her own.

The blonde did not love Chuffrey, but her choices had been limited. Besides, as ruler of Oz, she couldn't rely on a man in her life. That was a lesson she had learned many years ago after Fiyero left her for Elphaba. They married for the people of Oz. Nothing more. When Nessarose was killed, the Eminent Thropp line of Governors in Munchkinland was done away with. Other families vied for power to the point that feuds had cropped up. Although Glinda was leader, she noticed people didn't take her as seriously as they had the Wizard. Multiple times she had discovered plots on her life by the now illegal Gale Force. A mutiny in her guards two years prior encouraged her to court martial the senior officer of the group and fire the rest. Her current guard consisted almost entirely of Quadlings, with the Tinman as the exception.

The tiara sat on its blue satin pillow, mocking her. Every year on the same day the blonde donned it and the blue dress. She couldn't bear to wear them on any other day. For the rest of the year she wore a pink dress and tall gossamer crown. Every morning as she looked in the mirror and saw the green glow of the City behind her, the advice she had given Elphaba flooded back: 'pink goes good with green'. Now with the tiara placed on her golden curls tears flowed freely before she did her makeup. A knock at the door surprised her, yet it was almost too soft to be heard.

"It's open," she sniffled slightly and quickly wiped her nose.

Liir came in first, then Arii, and they both seemed nervous.

"Is something bothering you two?" Glinda asked sweetly.

"Umm…well…we were wondering who the Wicked Witch of the West was…" Liir started.

Arii finished his sentence, "…and why people are happy that she's dead."

The questions made the blonde light-headed. She gripped the side of her wardrobe to steady herself. She breathed deeply but the room refused to stop spinning. How could the twins not know the story of their mother? Was Elphaba truly determined to never return to Oz? It seemed so. She hadn't told them anything of Oz. Maybe if she had, Arii would have recognized Glinda's name at the first introduction.

Her vision went black.

* * *

A shrouded black figure slipped into the Slave Registration room. The woman at the desk glanced into the shadows before returning to her work. She was oblivious to the company she held. There was a whirring sound and a strange thud as a dagger attached her wide sleeve to the desk.

"Who's there?—"the question was cut off by a clearly female gloved hand over her mouth.

"My identity is of no use to you. My children were taken from me recently and I was informed you would know where they are."In a swift movement the dagger was pressed to her neck and the hand removed.

"I'd have to look in the records, but the last group of children came through five days ago. If I remember correctly it was two girls and three boys. At least two of the boys and girls seemed related. Twins I'm assuming because they were the same age." She swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat gently, afraid a hard swallow would hit the sharp blade.

"Arii and Liir." The scarf across the intruder's face began to fall.

"Yes, that's them. The other girl was Nor and the boys were Irji and Manek." Maybe this strange woman knew where they came from too.

"Irji…I recognize that name, but not the other two. Fiye—someone mentioned him to me once." The slip went unnoticed; however the slip of the scarf did not.

A sharp green face brought a scream to her throat, but the cool metal blade repressed it. "It can't be…"

"Oh but it is. I stand here before you, clearly not melted after these five years. Tell me where my children are."

"You don't have any children—you eat them!"

"I am as much a person as you. I am not a cannibal. Would you like to know who their father is?" there was sarcasm in the words.

Before she could protest, a second figure slipped inside.

"Has she told you where they are yet, Fae?" it was the Scarecrow.

"That isn't possible!"

"You're right, it isn't. But I was turned into a scarecrow about five years ago. Before that, I was the Captain of the Guard."

"But the Captain of the Guard at that time was Winkie Prince Fiyero Tiggular and he was beaten to death."

"We're one in the same. Elphaba used her magic to save me," He smiled at his emerald love.

"Now, back to business, tell us where Arii and Liir were sent." The not-dead Witch slipped her hand into one of his.

"Sir Chuffrey bought all five of them. He's Lady Glinda the Good's husband. They live in the Upper Uplands mansion." The dagger was pressed harder.

"Give me one good reason I shouldn't kill you." The green's eyes narrowed to icy slits.

"My daughter."

"So you sell other people's children—!" there was deep anger and accusation in the tone.

"To find her! She's all I have left!" tears threatened to fall on the cheeks of the no longer stoic woman, "But she disappeared the day your sister was crushed."

"How does that give you any right to take innocent children from their families?"

"I'm sure there would be news of her, but there never has been."

"After five years most people would just assume she's among the casualties of those who were killed by the cyclone."

"She wasn't in the bodies, and I found her hair ribbon."

"We share a bond, but I chose to find my children on my own instead of relying on others. And that is also why I know Arii and Liir are alive, whereas you know nothing of your daughter's well-being." Elphaba's words didn't make sense to herself. This woman was a mother as well, but they were so different. A strange tug told her to help yet she couldn't—wouldn't.

"I-I…you're right…it's my fault she's gone—wait, why should I trust you? You two are supposed to be dead." The dagger sank into her jugular when the pain in the green woman's leg returned and they both hit the floor. One dead, the other in shock.

* * *

Glinda felt the water as it splashed over her face and sat up. Her head throbbed. She laced her fingers together behind her head where it seemed the strongest. A warm, sticky, substance worked its way between the blonde's digits.

Arii in the meantime had turned a pale, sickly, green. Liir noticed this and grabbed his twin's arm.

"Arii! Breathe! It's just blood." The last part proved counterproductive as she sank into his lap.

"Liir," he turned to acknowledge Glinda, "when she wakes up I'm going to need you two to help me downstairs."

"Okay."

* * *

"Well, this is it." Fiyero indicated the largest estate in Gillikin almost underneath them.

"I think this is where Glinda's rooms are," the green pulled the broom around a corner to a large window.

He peered in through a crack in the curtains, "I think your guess was right."

"Hold on," she gave the window a hard kick and it was thrown open.

_**A/N- **Thoughts? Comments? Constructive Criticism? I love it all! In a review..._


	7. Part I: Chapter 7

_**Disclaimer: **I own nothing! Except for Arii of course._

_**A/N: **Waaaay too much school work. Don't expect updates to come in any regular pattern, it's just when I find time to. Here's chappy 7 by the way. Read and review!_

_**A/N2: **Banana Splits for my viewers_

_Don't forget to peel it! for_

_Dr. Crazy Homeschooler_

_TheWitch'sCat_

_wolfdream_

_Drop Your Oboe_

* * *

Time passed slowly, yet it was only a few clock ticks. The pair on the broom tumbled into the room. The blonde couldn't register who they were. The twins were dazed and confused. After a moment all five were out of their shock. Arii, from where she sat on the floor, smiled at her mother. The green-eyed child was still very pale and a quick look of concern passed Elphaba's face. No words had passed any of their lips, the green simply gathered her daughter in her arms, and the Scarecrow did the same to Liir.

"Papa…why are you a Scarecrow again?" Liir asked, absentmindedly picking a piece of straw out of his father that was sticking out of a hole that needed to be patched.

"I don't know Liir. I just am." He ruffled the boy's hair and placed a quick kiss on his forehead.

"Elphie…?" Glinda asked tentatively, tapping the green woman on the shoulder, more to make sure she was real than get her attention.

"I missed you." Elphaba threw her arms around the blonde.

The gesture shocked her, but she returned it. The green woman's body wracked with silent sobs.

"Oh, Elphie I've missed you too," said Glinda, sitting back so she could look her friend in the eyes, "I thought you were dead."

"Fiyero and I couldn't risk anyone knowing…but when Arii and Liir were taken—"

"Fiyero?!" The blonde burst in sudden shock.

"He's alive too. And in this room." Elphaba said smugly.

"Scarecrow?" she asked more for her own benefit.

"Yes, I'm Fiyero, Glinda. Elphaba saved me the day the guards tortured me in the cornfield." He smiled. It was a goofy, lop-sided smile, but a smile nonetheless.

"I—I tried to stop them. But they wouldn't listen." The blonde sniffed at the recollection of him being dragged away.

"Are the Gale Force still around?" asked the green in realization that her friend was now ruler of Oz.

"No," Glinda smiled, "I fired them all."

Arii in the mean time had taken to fiddling with her mother's skirts. She had pulled them up slightly until the edge of the bandage was revealed. Smart child that she was, she quickly let the fabric drop and hugged her knees to herself. When there was a pause in the conversation, the girl spoke.

"Mama, what happened to your leg?" she asked emerald eyes filled with a mix of curiosity and concern.

Elphaba cradled the child in her lap, "I fell off the broom and hurt myself. And I'm not sure I want to tell you more because of how you are with injuries."

"She blacked out when Lady Glinda hit her head, Mama." Liir piped up, still playing with the piece of straw.

"I did not!" Arii was not happy about her brother ratting her out, she would much rather tell their parents herself.

"Did too! When you saw all the blo—"he countered and stuck out his tongue.

Their verdigrisian mother interrupted, "That's quite enough you two." She turned to Glinda: "So, how has running a country without a corrupt leader and their sidekick to guide you along been?"

The blonde gasped in mock horror, "Elphie! You should know better than to fall in through my window and tease me like that. And for the records I'm getting along just fine, thank you very much."

"Does that include making children slaves?" pestered the green.

"Well haven't you become quite the interrogator." She huffed but it was all in jest.

"What can I say? I like to be up to date on things. Five years is a long time to live in a cabin in the forests of Fliaan."

"Listen to us, Elphie! We're going on and on as though we're school girls who haven't seen each other over summer break and have so much gossip to tell. But that was a terrible mean thing you did all those years ago, making me think you were both dead. So only two of my four friends died, Nessa and Boq." At Boq's name the green moved as if to say something, but bit her lip instead.

The adults were interrupted by a small knock on the door. Elphaba and Fiyero moved around to the far side of the bed while the blonde went to answer. The twins simply sat on the floor playing a game where they mirrored each other's movements as though nothing important had happened. Muffled sounds of small voices and Glinda's high-pitched one provided some curiosity. She let them in—the three other children.

"Hi, Arii!" Nor hugged the other girl from behind and ended up pulling both of them over backwards, "Oww…you okay?"

"Yeah, I landed on you." The emerald-eyed one said very matter-of-factly, "D'you wanna meet my Mama and Papa?"

"Ya-huh!" The three were led around the side of the bed.

"That's not your Ma, that's the Witch. And he's just a scarecrow." Manek scoffed.

"I am their mother, and their father wasn't always a Scarecrow. He was the Vinkun Prince Fiyero Tiggular." Elphaba countered, noticing that all three recognized the name.

"Our Ma is Sarima Tiggular…" Irji thought aloud.

"My little Sari has kids now," Fiyero chuckled to himself, "Sarima is my sister, which makes me your uncle, Elphaba your aunt, and Arii and Liir your cousins."

"Well _that's _ironic." Said Glinda from where she was sitting on the bed with a slight inflection of sarcasm, "I've been harboring the entire second generation of the Tiggular family."

"No thanks to you, we had to come out of hiding," chided the green.

"We need to tell people the truth, Elphie, it's been long enough." The blonde didn't want to keep the promise from years ago.

"No! If the people of Oz find out we're alive they'll just turn against you!" she screeched, then, calmly, "Please, Glin, you promised me all those years ago you would never tell them the truth about me…"

"Five years! I've been able to reform Oz without anyone else's help! But it's the hardest thing in the world for me to get up every morning knowing all my friends are dead and the Ozian people still hold prejudices against those who are different. I can't leave this place unless it's for a public event. I've been undermined in my rulings, illegal trafficking of children for example, and there are weekly threats on my life." The light reflected off the tears in the sapphire eyes, making the blue shine as though they were themselves precious gems, "Owwww…" she placed a hand on the back of her head, which was now throbbing once more. The blood leaked onto her hand, weaving its sticky trail between her fingers. As the blonde faded into darkness once more from the pain, she heard frantic voices.

"Glinda!"

"Catch her!"

"Liir, keep Arii distracted!"

"I think her..."

And that was all before the black.

_**A/N: **So, what do you people think? And tell me in a review please, it's so much easier than trying to read people's minds. Please review!_


	8. Part I: Chapter 8

**_Disclaimer:_** _I own nothing!_

_**A/N**_- _Sorry it's been so long everyone! School is officially the death of me. That's right. I'm just a ghost now. A phantom author._

**_A/N2_**- _Carrot Cake for everyone who reviewed the last chapter_

_Vampire Reader_

_Dr. Crazy Homeschooler_

_greengirl16_

_Eowyn-Faith_

_Drop Your Oboe_

_TheWitch'sCat_

_still waiting for my prince_

_Avatar Luna_

**_A/N3-_** _I started an RPG. All of you are welcome to join in. It's on my profile. Just PM me first._

* * *

"Oh my head…" Glinda moaned and blinked to adjust her eyes to the light. Gauze was wrapped around her head.

Elphaba came into the room holding a bowl of steaming liquid. She placed it on the table next to the bed and sat next to the blonde.

"Are you alright?" the green asked concernedly, helping her to sit up a little more.

"My head hurts, but not as much as before." She tucked a stray blonde curl behind her ear.

"Glinda," Elphaba took hold of her friend's hand, "your skull was extremely close to splitting in two, but all you got was a gash down the back of your hair, and conveniently it was almost exactly aligned to your part."

"Thank you, Elphie," the blonde squeezed the emerald hand.

"You're welcome, but what are you thanking me for?" she looked slightly confused.

"For coming when you did. You were always better at being a leader than I was…and I'd like you and Fiyero to rule with me."

"Glin, you know we can't, Oz will descend into anarchy if we even suggest that to the people."

"Do you know what these past five years have been like for me?! Every morning I would wake up in a city of green that no matter how much I tried to think of other things I always knew you would never come back. Everyone I was close to was dead! The city died after you did Elphie, nothing was the same, yes the people and the buildings were still there, but everything that had to do with the Wizard and the common fear people had of you were gone."

"Yesterday was the anniversary of when I 'died'," Elphaba attempted to steer away to a slightly different subject.

There was a sound of clanking metal outside the door and a slight creaking as it opened. The Tinman entered the room with a cup of tea in his hand. At the sight of the green woman and the blonde he dropped it, ceramic pieces went skidding into the far corners of the room and the tea quickly spread out into a large puddle.

"You!" he pulled his ax from where it hung at his side, "Stay away from her Witch!"

Elphaba stood, her gaze was cool, but there was an underlying wish for forgiveness that he couldn't see because he was so heartless.

"You're supposed to be dead! No matter, I'll just kill you myself right now!" he raised the ax above his head, the blonde buried her face in her palms, and the sharp blade came whistling towards the green.

She moved away in the nick of time, just barely avoiding the blow by an inch. He chased her as she ran out the door into the hallway. The bandage on her leg had loosened to the point that it began to unwind itself. Each pounding step was torture on her leg. She ran into Glinda's room and grabbed her broom from where it was propped next to the window. He swung once more this time it caught her on the thigh of her uninjured leg. Blood gushed from the wound as she limped as quickly as she could out of the room, using the broom to support herself.

"Boq! Stop! Please, just stop this!" the emerald woman called back to him as she continued running, her breath came in gasps, she knew her legs would give out any second.

"Never Witch! You ruined my life, so now I'll take yours!" he continued brandishing the ax.

A rush of adrenaline overcame her and she bellowed: "FIYERO!!"

Her Scarecrow lover came running out of the room he had been watching all of the children in just as the two blew past him in two blurs, one green and black, the other silver. He managed to tackle Boq from behind, sending the ax sliding away down the marble floor of the hallway.

"What's all this commotion?" Chuffrey asked as he rounded the corner and was taken aback by the sight before him. There was the Wicked Witch of the West, very much alive, and the Scarecrow was sitting on top of the Tinman, who was splayed out on the floor. He drew a hand gun from where it was concealed inside his suit jacket when he was sure none of them had noticed him.

Glinda in this time had come from the opposite end of the hallway.

"Elphie behind you!" she shouted and at the same time pulled out the gun she kept under her mattress for protection.

A shot was fired; the echo caused the children to shrink back into the room from where they were watching in the doorway. All cringed and there was a dull thud of a body on the floor. Every eye turned towards where Chuffrey had been standing, but was not anymore. A dark red circle in the center of his forehead told them the story.

"Glinda—you killed him!" Elphaba rushed to her friend, who was shaking, "Oh, don't cry Glin, you saved me."

"B-b-but I killed my husband…I've never killed anyone Elphie…I'm scared…" the blonde got out between sobs.

"Don't be afraid." The green held Glinda close.

"I'm not. I never liked him anyway." She wiped her tears with her handkerchief, a smile of relief on her face.

Fiyero was holding Boq, slightly unsuccessfully. He discreetly motioned for the five children to come and hang on the Tinman's legs.

"I'm not sure how the two of you feel about this, but I think getting that body out of here should be our priority." Fiyero said and helped the two women to stand.

"While this is very entertaining to watch, I'd prefer not to have these kids hanging on me as though I'm some sort of play structure." Boq grumbled from where he was held in place by the combined weight of the underage people clinging to him.

"I'll throw water on you so you rust in place! You hurt Elphie!" Glinda clicked over to him in her heels.

"She's evil-"

"I saved you! Nessa said the spell wrong so you lost your heart. If I was evil I would have just left you to die _Boq_."

The blonde looked intently at the Tinman, "Boq? It can't be. He-you died all those years ago. And you've been hiding from me—right here in my own home."

_**A/N- **So...what do you think? And tell me in a review please! I don't have time anymore to play internet mindreading with people. Please review!_


	9. Author's Note: Urgent!

**A/N:** Okay, so I'm stuck at a bit of a fork in the road. I have two options with how to continue this story.

1- Continue at the same time I have been.

Or

2- Skip ahead 9-13 years so the twins will be starting either high school or Shiz U.

I'm leaning towards the second one.

Please review and tell me which one!

And if it's the second one- if the twins should start high school or Shiz U.


	10. Part II: Chapter 1

**A/N:**_ Alright, I've come up with a compromise. The twins will be going to a high school that filters into Shiz. It's also so I can make this story longer. Thanks so much for everyone who reviewed with their input, alerted, and favorited this story._

_This starts off nine years after the end of the last chapter. So Arii, Liir, and Nor are 14._

* * *

"Wake up you!"

Liir shivered at the sudden cold as the bedding he had cocooned himself in was swiftly ripped off. Groggily, he opened one eye to find his twin sister standing next to his bed, hands on hips and scowl on face. With a moan he rolled over and promptly fell back to sleep.

"Argh! Why do I even _try_?" Arii sighed, exasperated, "It's not my problem if you're late for your first day at EC High."

"EC High is today?!" he shot out of bed at her words.

"Yes, I just said that." she disappeared out of the room, which had become Liir's when Irji and Manek went to Emerald City High. EC High was a boarding school that filtered into Shiz University.

In the neighboring room she and Nor shared, Arii put on her outfit for the first day: a green dress with a yellow sash and headband. She examined herself in the mirror, debating how she should arrange her hair, Elphaba entered the room unnoticed.

"It's time to go. Nor and Liir are downstairs waiting." Her emerald mother said simply and proceeded to brush her daughter's long hair into a tight braid.

"I'm sorry Mama; I didn't know I was taking so long." Arii smiled at the solution that was obvious only after it had been done.

"That's alright Arii," Elphaba gently prodded her out the doorway and to the back door of the palace, "Now that's everything--"

"Wait! I have something for you!" Glinda's high-pitched voice hit their ears a second before she nearly did in a streak of blue and blonde. Breathing heavily, she produced three small white boxes and instructed that they not be opened until the group was on the train.

Around the corner came Fiyero, whom Elphaba had found a way to more permanently suppress the scarecrow spell. A pale, blonde girl clung to his neck fervently, her face ashen.

"Poppy had another attack," he explained as he set the child on the ground so she could sit up.

Popiela, or Poppy for short, was Glinda and Boq's daughter. Now before anyone questions why Boq was able to father a child, let it first be clarified that out of kindness Elphaba lifted the spell that affected him as well at the same time she did Fiyero's. Poppy had adopted both her parents' small stature, but the debilitating pain in her heart was clearly from her father. Over the years the seven year old had been on a steady stream of medications prescribed by various doctors who could do no more than sit back and hope. Several times Elphaba had searched the Grimmerie for another way to save someone with a failing heart, yet always came back to the tin and straw spells. The 'attacks' Poppy had could not be identified by any Ozian doctor, but they had told Glinda and Boq( known to them as Toc) that the slightest increase in her heartbeat could kill her.

Elphaba knelt by the frail child and felt her pulse. It was clearly slowed, but that was better than if the little heart had been racing a mile a minute.

"Arii," she turned to her green-eyed daughter, "get the bark extract and a blanket." It was an order, not a request.

"Yes, Mama," Arii turned on her heel and ran into the house. She returned momentarily holding a dark blue ceramic jar full of oak bark that had been soaked and ground so the aspirin separated out. A gray flannel blanket was slung over her shoulder. Her thoughts turned to the horrible events in recent years that had gripped other areas of Oz.

The Thousand Year disease had arisen in the Vinkus and become a full-fledged epidemic in the past six years. Among the death count of the first year had been Sarima Tiggular. Kiamo Ko had been torched to remove all traces of the disease so it left only the stone skeleton. The refugee camp the green knew so well had been discovered and burned by those discontented with Lady Glinda the Good's rule, which had become much stricter over the past twelve years. It was unknown whether there were any survivors. In Quadling Country, the Badlands were consuming the marshy lands at an alarming rate. The desert was reclaiming the oasis of Oz.

Boq stood in the doorway, watching as Glinda pulled their child into her lap and wrapped the blanket around the small shoulders. As the aspirin took its affects, Poppy cried softly against her mother's neck.

"Oh…shhh…shshshhhh…"she stroked the white blonde hair of her daughter and gently rocked from side to side.

"Come stop you're cryin',

it will be alright.

Just take my hand,

hold it tight.

I will protect you from,

all around you.

I will be here,

don't you cry.

For one so small,

you seem so strong.

My arms will hold you,

keep you safe and warm." Glinda sang gently.

Boq continued the song,

"This bond between us,

can't be broken.

I will be here,

don't you cry."

They sang together as she slipped into a healing slumber

"Cuz you'll be in my heart

Yes you'll be in my heart

From this day on

Now and forever more

You'll be in my heart

No matter what they say

You'll be here in my heart

Always…"

Elphaba observed the couple smugly, "And to think all those years ago you pawned Boq off on my sister and convinced yourself Fiyero was your soul mate. Ah, the irony of finding the love of your life…"

"Shouldn't Nor and the twins be on their way to EC High by now?" Fiyero asked, eyeing the small pile of three suitcases and bookbags.

"Oh crap!" Living in the presence of impressionable children for so many years, Elphaba had learned to curtail her swearing or at least substitute words.

"Aunt E, we really need to get going. We'll miss the train." Nor said picking up her things from the pile. Arii and Liir followed suit.

At the train station, Elphaba had shrouded herself as she did so many times before, but this time instead of leaving her hat at home, it sat on her head in its rightful place. It didn't even cross her thoughts that the hat would have come to be associated with her.

"Is that--? It can't be--." The murmurings of the group of students beside them on the depot on their way to EC High and Shiz could be over heard in small portions.

Suddenly, a voice rose above the rest of the crowd, "It is! It's her! The Wicked Witch of the West is alive!"

Elphaba whirled around and unwound her scarf in a swift motion. The students moved back in shock.

Before any of the students could say anything, before the green could explain—Arii spoke.

"She is not wicked. Elphaba Tiggular is a woman. And she's our mother." The emerald-eyed one pulled her twin next to her.

"Your mother?!" another student asked incredulously.

"Yes, I am their mother, and her aunt." She explained, moving closer to the group. The morning sun hit her sharp features in such a way that the brim of her conical hat shielded her eyes. "We've all been living in Lady Glinda the Good's palace the past nine years. Glinda and I were roommates at Shiz and we're still best friends."

"Their surname is Tiggular. But the Tiggular family died out." A man sitting on a bench in front of the ticket office said.

"No, only Sarima Tiggular is dead. Fiyero Tiggular is their father, her uncle, and my love. Irji and Manek went to EC High a couple years ago. That's where Nor, Arii, and Liir are headed. Then again, Irji was registered as Jir and Manek was registered as Mak. They picked those names themselves." The green woman explained. There was a strange familiarity about the man. He had probably been one of the witch hunters, but there seemed to be no underlying hostility towards her in him.

"You don't recognize me Elphaba Thropp-Tiggular?" He stood, "I'm Crope."

She was nearly floored by this revelation. "What is this, Reunion Day? Nessa and Tibbett are the only ones missing."

Crope rapped sharply on the ticket window, a woman with a significant scar across her face came out the door.

"E-Elphaba?" she asked just at the same time as the green asked, "Nessarose?"

* * *

_Review please!_

_The Gloq lullaby for Poppy is "You'll Be In My Heart" from Tarzan by Phil Collins._

_Just so you know, I don't like Gloq, or Boq for that matter. So that's why I brought Nessa back._


	11. Part II: Chapter 2

_**A/N: **I'm so sorry everyone I haven't updated in so long. This chapter is shorter than usual because I'm coming out of a severe case of writer's block._

* * *

"Oh, Fabala, it _is_ you!" The scarred woman leaned heavily on crutches, and braces were evident on her legs.

"It's good to see you, Nessa—but these past fourteen years you've been living in hiding?" Elphaba asked her sister as she helped her sit on the bench.

"Oh look who's talking now. Crope and I—along with everyone else at this train depot—had no idea until today that you were alive. I miss those shoes you magicked for me all those years ago, my wheelchair too even." Nessarose admitted, setting her crutches beside her.

"How did you survive? The house fell on you. I saw your legs sticking out. You were crushed." The green clutched her sister's hand as an affirmation to both of them that they were alive.

"When Glinda took my shoes and gave them to that farm brat my soul decided to go back into my body. There were cracks in the floorboards above me, so eventually I pulled myself up into the house. I don't know where I got the strength to do that from. Well, I was much younger then."

The crowd was watching the two sisters intently. These women—the most feared women in all of Ozian history—were nothing more than escapees of cruel fates.

"Aunt Nessarose?" Arii said—she had opened her box from Glinda and found the slippers inside, "I believe these are yours."

Nessa's eyes lit up at the sight of the shoes she had lost all those years ago. "Thank you, dear." She turned to her verdigris sister, "Oh, they still sparkle as much as the day Father first gave them to me, fix them on my feet will you, Fabala?"

"Of course," Elphaba smiled, and once they were secure helped her stand up.

The train came to a screeching halt, causing everyone on the depot platform to jump unanimously. Parents, younger siblings, and other relatives waved the students into the passenger cars, but still, all eyes were on the 'wicked' sisters. Glinda, Boq, and Fiyero pulled up in a carriage just then, determined to say goodbye to the second batch of kids heading to EC High.

"Boq?!" Nessarose hissed just as the three new arrivals said, "Nessa?!"

* * *

Once settled on the train after the smothering, loving farewells, the three ripped open their presents. Liir extracted a dagger with an emerald handle, Nor received a jasper necklace, and Arii was content to know the good deed she had done by returning the jewelled shoes to their rightful owner. They buzzed happily about their gifts. The twins recalled the stories they had been told about the objects they had been given.

In the booth opposite theirs, a woman with cloudy white eyes listened intently to their conversation. Another woman and a man who looked hauntingly similar to her sidled into their seats with the blind woman.

* * *

_**A/N: **Please review!_


	12. Part II: Chapter 3

_**A/N- **I'm so sorry everyone I haven't updated in months. School has been hectic and sucked the muse right out of me._

_**A/N2- **Now. Onto the rewards for reviewing! Frozen grapes for everyone who reviewed last chapter._

_They're like mini popsicles!_

_-The Last Truffula Tree_

_-IceNin55_

_-greengirl16_

_-Drop Your Oboe_

_-Vampire Reader_

_-Elizabeth_

_**A/N3- **All of your assumptions that the blind woman is Morrible and the guy twin might be the Wizard are entirely off base. But to see why you must read on._

* * *

In the course of the journey, Liir had fallen asleep against his twin, who in frustration shoved him towards the opposite wall of the booth. Both girls gave knowing looks and shook their heads. There were facts of life that could only be known by having brothers. The male in their company issued forth a patently theatrical snore every once in awhile.

"That's disgusting," Nor regarded the odd sounds emitting from her cousin.

With a shrug Arii said pointedly, "You don't make the most attractive sounds in your sleep either."

"What gives you that idea?" The fully Vinkun girl asked indignantly.

"I share a room with you." She ended the argument with that.

The two girls discussed everything from the classes they were taking to rumors they had heard about mysterious disappearances. Thankfully though, none of those said disappearances had occurred in the past nine years. What kind of a reception would they have? How would they be treated because they were related to the infamous Wicked Witch of the West? There was no telling how fast gossip would spread through Oz, but it would certainly reach every corner by the end of the week. At least Nor and her brothers were legitimate, the twins were the product of a one night stand between two fugitives.

"North East Gate. Now arriving at the North East Gate of the Emerald City." The Conductor bellowed as the locomotive screeched to a stop at the depot. "All out!" The last command was given because the tracks from Gillikin ended at the North East gate and transitioned to the narrower Emerald City tracks. Due to a disagreement between the companies who built the train tracks Oz had ended up with two widths of railroad ties.

Arii kicked her twin in the shins to wake him, but it only brought him slightly out of his unconscious state. The girls resorted to nearly dragging him out, as well as carrying all of their things for the three of them. Once on the wooden platform they dropped him with an unceremonious thud. He came to in no time flat after that.

"What was that for?!" Liir hopped up and brushed himself off curtly.

"Be glad we didn't leave you on the train." Arii folded her arms as their mode of transportation pulled out of the depot.

The blind woman and her two companions approached the young trio just then. The latter group took no notice of them. At least not until the sightless woman spoke.

"I'd recognize those voices anywhere, but you've grown!" Izu crooned, reaching out a shaky hand to pat each of them on the head.

"I think you have us confused with someone else, ma'am." Arii furrowed her brow and stood stock still as her hair was rumpled.

"How could I be confused about you, Arii?" She could feel the girl's expression change to one of shock.

Liir was even more confused, "Wait…how do you know us? If we don't remember you…" He trailed off.

"Simply put we've known you since you were very little, less than a year old to be precise." She grasped their hands in her cold ones from poor circulation. "I'm Izu."

"I'm Kerra." The somewhat younger woman offered, and her twin followed with: "Elorr."

"Kerra and Elorr…Arii and Liir…why does that seem so familiar…?" Arii mused softly, wondering why the twin's rolled the R's in their names. Was it something cultural? If it was, she had never heard of any group in Oz that rolled their R's so distinctly.

Nor bounced back and forth from one foot to the other, "You know, I'd love to stay and chat, but according to this"—she held up the letter they had all received—"we have to be in the Main Auditorium for the Address and rooming assignments."

"Sounds more like debriefing and forced associations to me." Liir grumbled to his twin, who in turn rolled her eyes in exasperation "We might as well get this over with." She called back over her shoulder to the group of adults, "It was nice to meet you. Our mother would probably like to hear from you."

They followed the swarm of students, most of whom they recognized from piling into and out of the train, to the Main Auditorium. Once inside they allowed their eyes to adjust to the substantially dimmer light. A pudgy, roly-poly, sort of man at the front behind a podium cleared his throat to get the new students' attention over the din of chatter.

"Good afternoon, future scholars, I am Head Master Leond. On the behalf of myself and all of the staff here at EC High, we expect only the highest standards and behavior from our students here." He looked pointedly at a group of impish boys who were making great sport of flicking each other in the ears. At that point the twins and their cousin barely noticed what else the Head Master was blabbering on about up there: something about their merit, a drive for excellence, a no-nonsense discipline policy. Up until the announcement of rooming assignments that was, "Now, I need the gents to the right of the room and the ladies to the left."

The students quickly sorted themselves out as instructed as a few apparently high ranking administrators lined up with long strings of keys and clipboards. One at a time the clipboards and keys were handed over to the Head Master. Then just as quickly as they had arrived, the non-descript faculty members were gone.

"Before we begin I would like to inform you of the circumstances regarding rooming assignments. You will be placed in groups of three to five. Any co-ed activity aside from in the Main Halls of the gender respective dormitories will be severely punished and repeat offences will result in immediate expulsion. Also, there will be random checks for cleanliness and _other things _with no forewarning. Any decoration placed in dorms must be non-offensive and not leave any lasting effect on any part of the room. All damage to school property—those rooms belong to this school, not you—must be paid by the students who board in the room, regardless of who caused the damage. No changes can be made to rooming assignments." After laying down the law, he continued on to the actual task of assigning rooms.

Students went off in trios, quartets, and the somewhat less-common quintets to settle in. Some chatted happily, others grumbled under their breath. Liir was called up before the girls.

"Liir Thropp, Tenorai Aiome, Lemeor Madic, and Qeto Ewolk in room 38 on the third floor." Keys were handed over to each of the boys and they filed out.

Nor was called next and assigned to room 14 with Saiya Luxxet and Zoie Paor, both of whom were Gillikinese beauties and she felt very plain compared to them. She looked longingly back at her cousin before following the respectively golden and strawberry blondes.

Arii was among the last to receive her rooming detail with the other four remaining girls: Gwenda Fomur, Lynn Qork, Aliena Ban, and Caris Wulfeno. "Room 25, second floor," The Head Master practically threw the keys at the girls, clearly exhausted by the morning's events.

Once in their room, Liir had found out that Tenorai and Lemeor (pronounced as one would say lemur) were both Quadlings and Qeto was a Munchkinlander. Although one could probably guess the latter, seeing as Qeto came up to the shoulders of his roommates just barely.

Across the way in the girl's dormitories, his twin settled in with what he had termed 'forced associates'. She didn't think that was a very far description off in the short time they had been together. The walls were immaculately clean and blindingly white—the sort that would make you lose your mind if you stared at them for too long. Wooden floors, cold to the touch from the furnace being disabled during the summer months. Five single beds: all made identically, all with the same commission blankets folded at the ends, all had feather pillows perfectly fluffed. A few empty bookshelves, two wardrobes (containing some spare sets of sheets), a wide dresser with a mirror across the top, and one tall window that looked out over what appeared to be a small courtyard.

"Before we unpack everything maybe we should decide on sleeping arrangements." Caris broke the awkward silence that had filled the room. Her deep red dress (so deep that it was nearly sanguine) set off her peachy skin as she stood in a patch of sun that filtered through the window.

Smoothing her skirt (a nervous habit she had adopted from her mother), Arii requested the bed nearest the window. She met no opposition and proceeded to unpack her belongings. It didn't matter to her where everyone else decided to sleep so she paid no attention to her roommates. She kicked her shoes off, gazing out the window. Her thoughts wandered to her cousin and twin.

Nor sat on her bed, which was also the one nearest the window. She fingered the jasper necklace that had belonged to her mother. Then there was the father she never met, who died in a hunting accident two weeks before she was born. According to one of several various Vinkun superstitions it was unwise to say the name of a dead relative unless you wanted to invoke the spirit's wrath. For that reason she had never learned his name. Her mousy brown hair fell around her face.

Across the courtyard, Liir was comfortably settled in and getting acquainted with his roommates over a game of poker. They were betting various sugary and salty snacks, littering the room with empty bags and shed wrappers. None of them had noticed the emerald-handled dagger. It was safely stashed under his mattress. None of them could keep a straight face after awhile from the absurd amount of sugar they had consumed in such a short amount of time.

* * *

"You're supposed to be dead." Boq was unsure of what else to say.

"And you're supposed to be made of tin." Nessa shot back.

"Only because your spell backfired and made me lose my heart."

"You were upset about it and went on a rampage after Elphaba."

"I didn't know she saved me. It's your fault."

Nessa's face fell at this, the scar that marred her cheek hidden by shadows. "But Boq, I still—"

"Save it. Glinda and I have a daughter." Boq snapped.

"So you really did lose your heart to her." For the past 14 years she had lived with Crope, Nessa had survived almost entirely on a fantasy that Boq loved her. This conversation drove the knife of malice deeper into her heart than ever before. If anyone had lost their heart, it was Nessarose.

"Nessa let it go you're behaving like a child." Elphaba sighed.

"You left me. Again!" Nessa was close to tears.

"There was nothing else I could have done for you. I magicked those shoes. Because of your selfishness you were beyond helping." Elphaba rationalized and brought her sharp face close to her younger sister's.

"I was the selfish one? Everything you did was for yourself--" Nessa accused.

"It was for the Animals, for the Resistance, for Fiyero, for Arii and Liir. Absolutely none of it was for myself. You only think it was because I refused to do anything for _you_." Elphaba swiftly cut her off. "As happy as I am to see you. I wish that day fourteen years ago _really was_ when we had last met." She shook her head.

Glinda decided to step in then. "Alright, you all had reasons for what you did. There's no point in attacking each other over it. What's done is done."

Fiyero had been watching the entire exchange leaned up against the building in the cool guy fashion he still possessed. Yet now it was "I'm cool because I know what's really important" rather than "I'm cool because I'm a deadbeat prince". He walked over and wrapped his arms around the green from behind, helping to calm her down.

The Ozians on the platform around them were dumbstruck. None of them had considered these people as being capable of kindness or even positive relationships with others. Now here they were fighting over events that had occurred almost a decade and a half ago. Slowly they had learned the truth of the Wizard's tyrannical rule. That it was merely smoke and mirrors. Was everything they believed about the so-called Wicked Witches smoke and mirrors as well?

* * *

_**A/N- Well, will that suffice? It's a longer chapter than usual as well. Review and tell me what you think.**_


	13. Part II: Chapter 4

_**Disclaimer: **I own absolutely nothing of Wicked. But some of the characters are mine._

_**A/N:** See? My updates are getting more regular. Well, please R&R this chapter._

_**A/N2: **Giant strawberries for everyone who reviewed last chapter_

_Super fruits!_

_The Last Truffula Tree_

_IceNin55_

_JadeTakashi_

_Drop Your Oboe_

_Elizabeth_

* * *

Elphaba watched her sister and Boq stare daggers at each other. Both were irritated the other had stumbled back into their lives. She was glad Fiyero was behind her. He grounded her; acted as her gravity.

"How did you get your heart back if a spell can't be reversed?" Nessa spat at Boq, commenting on his human appearance.

"Because it isn't his." Elphaba cut in and placed a hand on her sister's shoulder.

"Then who's is it?"

"It was from someone who died with their heart intact. Magical transplant." The green woman shrugged. Over the course of the conversation she found herself wishing more and more that Nessarose wasn't really alive. True, she loved her sister, but having her around just complicated things further. She glanced at the glowing ruby shoes. Fifteen years ago she had enchanted them. The wearer was bound to them for the course of their life, or as long as they were in this world. So her sister's life was bound to a functional piece of fashion.

"Enough of this. We need to go back to the palace and continue this conversation there. Crope, Nessa, you come too." Glinda took command of the situation quickly and waved the reunited Charmed Circle. Worry tugged at the back of her mind, worry for Poppy. She ushered all of them into the carriage.

The trek back to the Palace was an odd limbo between courtesy and discomfiture. No one seemed to want to say anything in the claustrophobic confines of the carriage. When the gates came into view, Glinda realized she had been holding her breath. She let it out a tiny bit, but still couldn't quell the panic brewing inside her. She told herself it was irrational.

The door was answered by Isida, who had been kept on as Popiela's nursemaid. Her face was almost as pale as her cap. She swallowed noticeably and motioned for Glinda and Boq to follow her. The door to their daughter's room was closed as per usual. Inside the heavy curtains were drawn shut and a dying fire flickered in the small hearth. In the bed Poppy lay very peacefully and Glinda had to rush over and lay a finger on her pale neck to show there was nothing to be worried about.

"Momsie…" Her daughter whispered without opening her eyes.

"I'm right here sweetie," she held a thin hand to her face to prove her point.

"I'm dying Momsie." Poppy sighed.

"No. You're going to get better." Glinda said forcefully to keep herself from crying.

"The medicine doesn't help anymore…it's only a matter of time. Please don't cry Momsie…" she hadn't opened her eyes once, but felt a salty tear along her fingers pressed to her mother's cheek.

Boq stepped forward and planted a gentle kiss on his daughter's white blonde hair. The three simply sat huddled together without another word passed between them. For days, then weeks, which in turn became two months Poppy was confined to her bed. At the end of the first month she was too weak to open her eyes even if she wanted to. A week later she couldn't lift her head. Every day she looked more like the bleached cotton sheets around her. When it had nearly been two months her breath got shallower and her heart beat slowed.

* * *

After two months at EC high everyone had fallen into the daily grinding schedule of life. Arii had found a great friend in Caris through their common unquenchable thirst for knowledge. Liir, his roommates, his cousins Irji and Manek, and their roommates formed a ragtag bunch of adolescent boys. Nor preferred to keep to herself; Saiya and Zoie were near well inseparable. On the weekends students had the option to go home provided they could pay for their roundtrip train fare. Most of them stayed to work on assignments or just hang out with their friends.

"Let's play 'ten fingers'." Manek suggested one Saturday when somehow all of the siblings, cousins, and roommates were gathered in the shade of a few overreaching oaks. Kairo and Goron, the instigator's roommates, were quick to agree.

"There is no way you'll be able to keep this age-appropriate." Nor remarked to her brother and folded her arms.

"Who said anything about this being age-appropriate?" Tenorai smirked, leaning back on his elbows. His mop of black hair swept across his forehead. He winked at Nor who ignored him and looked at a bright blue bird sitting in one of the oaks. But her cheeks flushed, a few glances were directed his way.

"You never know, maybe you innocent little girls will learn a few things." Liir commented with a shrug.

Arii dropped a thick book, _Common Sense and Rationalization, _on his head, rattling his teeth. "Hopefully some of that leaked into your thick head." She managed to whip him with her long braid when she turned around as well.

"Hey! What was that for?" Liir rubbed his head.

"You're an idiot." Arii snapped in Arjiki.

"I am not," Liir shot back in the same tribal vernacular.

"You're both idiots," Irji cut in.

"As interesting as this is to listen to…the rest of us have absolutely no idea what you're saying." Caris remarked, voicing the confusion of the rest of the group for the most part.

"I think that may be their point." Nor smirked and blew a piece of her hair out of her face. "Let's start. Whoever wants to play, stay; if you don't: go."

No one made the move to leave. In fact, they settled in more. Varei, one of Irji's three roommates, volunteered to go first. He was Glikkun, with dirty blonde hair that was cropped short and small gray eyes.

"Never have I ever…jumped on a bed." He stated in all seriousness.

No one put a finger down, most looked at him incredulously.

"You mean to tell us you've never in your entire seventeen year life jumped on a single bed?" Okir, one of Varei's roommates, shook his head.

"Ha! You spoke next so it's your turn Okir," Irji pointed an accusatory finger.

"Never have I ever cheated on a test."

Gwenda rolled her eyes, "Well, at least we know he's honest."

Manek moved to call her out but she beat him to the punch, "I know, I know, it's my turn. Never have I ever…flown on a broom." She shrugged, but noticed when Arii and Liir each put a finger down.

"Hey, how is it that you two have flown on a broom when everyone in Oz knows the only person to ever fly on a broom died a little over fourteen years ago?" Caris raised an eyebrow quizzically after noticing they were down to nine each.

"Because she's our mom…" Liir shrugged.

"And she doesn't let us use it anyway. It was only when we were little." Arii retied the purple ribbon around the tail of her thick plait.

"Wait…so your mom is the Wicked Witch of the West?" Goron asked in disbelief, scratching his head.

"Yes, and after this game we'll go into more detail." Arii ended the track the derailed conversation was on. "Caris spoke first, so she goes, then Liir, then me."

"Never have I ever seen my parents naked." Caris said definitively.

Several people who had had the misfortune of walking in on their parents begrudgingly put down a finger each. All eyes were on the twins at that point. Liir shifted a bit, Arii pressed the tips of her fingers together in thought. With a sigh of 'let's get this over with' he made his declaration.

"Never have I ever gotten drunk."

"And I'm sure you'll be very proud of yourself when you get your first hangover." Arii reassured him before forging on with her own. "Never have I ever been in love."

"Love is strange: it's a choice, a state of being, an emotion, an involuntary reaction, a completion." Saiya waxed philosophic and Nor found herself embarrassed she had considered her roommate a stereotypical blonde.

Zoie smiled, at Saiya. "Love is its truest when it breaks alliances—the greatest chains and even if there are consequences the people involved don't care."

"Remember mom and dad's song? 'Say there's no future for us as a pair and though I may know I don't care'." Arii asked Liir somewhat, but really no one in particular.

Saiya found all eyes on her in anticipation. "Never have I ever watched someone die."

Lynn was the only person to put her finger down. "My little brother…he ate something from a plant. I think it was called hemlock… The doctor did as much as she could…but it wasn't enough. He was too young, he had eaten too much, we realized too late… I stood next to the bed they had him on and held his hand. Then he was just gone…" She sighed and looked up towards a lone puffy white cloud making its way across the cerulean sky, "Was two years too long, Rey?"

"You don't have to go next if you don't want to." Aliena set her hand on the shorter girl's shoulder.

"I'm fine." Lynn took a breath, closing her eyes. She held her head high full of a simple strength from deep within herself. "Never have I ever…had a crush on someone's parent." Her eyes flashed with a mischievousness no one had known her to possess.

Manek, Kairo, and Goron all simultaneously lost fingers. "Staisie's mom has got it going on." They said in unison after regarding each other with a nod.

"Do you have anything better to think about besides sex? Wait. Don't answer that. It's rhetorical." Nor shook her head in mock hopelessness, then deliberately turned to Tenorai. "Never have I ever cross-dressed."

"Of course you haven't sister." Manek scoffed and put another finger down. "Aliena goes next."

"Never have I ever gone a week without showering." The girls all made faces; all but Liir put their fingers down among the guys.

"That's disgusting." Gwenda deadpanned. "Eh…Goron, you're up."

Goron winked at her, flashed a smile, her ears reddened. "Never have I ever stolen."

"What about a heart?" Gwenda murmured softly.

"Alright. Can anyone tell me how this suddenly got so lovey-dovey?" Arii raised an eyebrow, watching Tenorai and Nor, Varei and Okir, Saiya and Zoie, Gwenda and Goron. Every pair was either knowingly or unknowingly blatantly flirting.

"They're twitterpated." Caris decided.

"Twitterwhodawhated?" Liir's forehead scrunched in confusion.

"Twitterpated: deeply in love to the point that they block out everything else." Caris explained and rolled her eyes.

A stiff school official approached Arii, presented her with a letter, then left before anyone could blink. Arii turned it over to examine the wax seal that held it closed. Purple with an image of a broom imprinted in it: from her mother. She broke the seal and quickly read through the letter.

_Arii and Liir:_

_I'm not sure how to write this without sounding to blunt…Poppy has passed on. Her weak little heart could no longer sustain her. Your father and I will make arrangements with the EC High officials if you wish to attend the service and wake._

_Your mother,_

_Elphaba T. Tiggular. _

"Oh no…" She covered her mouth with her hand and passed the letter to her twin. She ripped out patches of grass from under her hands. Her viridescent eyes hardened. The ground whirred by, followed by a concrete path that lead to steps, through a hallway, up two flights of stairs, fumbling with a key, a door swings open, she throws herself on the bed at the end of the room. She sobbed into her pillow for what seemed like hours and probably was. The moon had replaced the sun.

Caris convinced the other girls to stay near the door to give Arii some space. She rubbed small comforting circles on her roommate's back. She was the oldest of seven girls and remembered doing the same thing to all six of her little sisters to help them sleep. Once she was convinced Arii was slumbering calmly she pulled off her shoes and tucked her in. She motioned for the rest of them to go to bed as well. Before extinguishing the lights she checked the other girls, slipped into her nightclothes, and sent them into enveloping darkness.

* * *

_**A/N:** Alright, what'd you think? Of the game? Reactions? Pairings?Just so you know, I'm not really proud of this chapter and will probably end up extending it substantially for my next update instead of another chapter._

_What I don't own in this chapter that isn't covered by the Wicked disclaimer:_

_"Staisie's mom has got it going on" refers to the song Stacey's Mom by Good Charlotte_

_"...Twitterpated" is from Disney's Bambi_


End file.
